PROSE CLASS 2009-2010

This website is an integral part of Dr. Howlett’s Prose Classes

The primary aim of the Prose Class is to develop the skills you have acquired so far

We will concentrate on:

Strategies of comprehension of the source text (English)

Devising strategies of translation into the target text.

Developing active vocabulary

Improving command of grammatical structures

Developing knowledge of formal and informal language

Maintaining command of spoken Russian

BEFORE WE START

1) I require typed Russian proses, emailed to me at jrh11@cam.ac.uk 

2) I recommend: http://www.stanwardine.com/russification.htm#Installing%20a%20more%20phonetic%20keyboard%20for%20those%20using%20the%20standard%20English%20%28QWERTY%29%20keyboard

  for PC users which will enable you convert your standard keyboard to a dual English/Cyrillic keyboard with a qwerty layout. That means that you will not need to put stickers on your keyboard!

Mac users should go to http://www.friends-partners.org/partners/rusmac/ to find a simple Mac programme for easy switching between keyboards.

HOW TO USE THIS WEBSITE

(PLEASE NOTE that all underlined headings are hyperlinks which will bring you to the relevant pages)

This website has the following sections:

● PASSAGES FOR TRANSLATION

These  are the English passages we will translate into Russian. Most are about 200 words long.

● VOCABULARY

Here you will find most of the Russian vocabulary you need for each passage.

● MODEL VERSIONS

These are versions, i.e samples of how the passage can  be translated. The model versions refer to specific mistakes and general points of relevant grammar.

● GENERAL POINTS OF GRAMMAR (GPG)

● These are some basic grammar rules you need to learn (or re-learn)

●

MICHAELMAS TERM

Week 1

In class 1 we shall do an unseen passage so that I can assess your language skills.

After the class you will do the complete Russian version of Unseen 1.

Week 3

We will go through your Unseens in class. After the class download the Unseen from MODEL VERSIONS and make sure that you have understood the comments on your translation.

Download Prose 1 from PASSAGES FOR TRANSLATION and download and learn the VOCABULARY for Prose 1 . Then translate Prose 1 without looking at the vocabulary and email it to me.

Week 5

I will discuss your translations of Prose 1 in class. After the class download the Russian version of Prose 1 from MODEL VERSIONS and make sure that you have understood the comments on the translation. The footnotes contain comments specific to the passage as well as references to GPG =  GENERAL POINTS OF GRAMMAR

Week 7 and thereafter

We will work our way through the proses on this website. There will be an unseen test once a term.

A Comprehensive Russian Grammar by Terence Wade best for ease of use. 

Towards the end of Michaelmas—if you are interested in the theory of translation, and especially if you are thinking of a translation project, read

Steiner G., After Babel: Aspect of Language and Translation, Oxford, 1975

Venuti L., The Translator's Invisibility: The History of Translation, London, 1995

Eco, U., Mouse or Rat: Translation as Negotiation, London, 2003

Last Updated: October 2010